Post 16 High Needs Funding: A system under strain
Paul Stannard
16 to 19 Senior Policy Manager, AELP
High Needs funding plays a crucial role in supporting young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in post 16 education. It underpins the additional support many learners require to access learning, develop life skills, and achieve positive outcomes. However, the system designed to support them continues to be under strain. Rising demand, budget shortfalls, and systemic challenges are making it increasingly difficult for providers to adequately meet the needs of the growing number of learners with an EHCP.
In this blog, we explore the current issues with High Needs funding in post-16 education, the impact on young people and providers, and what must change to build a system that works for all.
What Is High Needs Funding?
High Needs funding is the financial support provided for children and young people aged 0–25 with complex SEND, particularly those who require an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP). In the post-16 context, this funding enables providers to deliver the additional support and make reasonable adjustments for young people to successful achieve qualifications and non-qualification outcomes e.g., improved confidence, independent living skills.
The funding system has three main elements:
- Element 1: Core funding (study programme funding based in size of the programme a learner is on).
- Element 2: Additional support funding (up to around £6,000 per high needs learner, often paid by ESFA or the home local authority).
- Element 3: Top-up funding from the student’s home local authority, based on individual need.
Growing Demand
Over the last decade, the number of young people with EHCPs has continued to increase. According to Department for Education statistics, the total number of learners with an EHCP increased by over 11% from January 2023 to January 2024 alone. More students are staying in education longer, particularly those aged 19–25, due to the greater emphasis on preparation for adulthood pathways. As a result, based on current data there are over 75,000 young people with an EHCP in the 16-25 age range who could have access to the post-16 education sector.
Alongside this, the complexity of needs is growing. More learners require more intensive interventions, 1:1 support, assistive technologies, and specialised curriculum adaptations. This places further pressure on providers who are already operating within tight budgets.
Funding Gaps and Shortfalls
Despite rising demand, High Needs funding has not kept pace with inflation or the increasing complexity of students' needs. Base rates remain largely static, and local authorities frequently struggle with High Needs budget deficits. It has been widely reported that, for example, in FE Week that Councils have been able to keep deficits off their balance sheets however, many local authorities will not be able to submit a balanced budget from 2026 onwards if they have to report these deficits as proposed. Sadly, this is not the only article of its type. Although some additional funding has been provided, the majority of this will only serve existing deficits.
The funding landscape is also highly variable. Locality can impact that the level of support a young person receives rather than what they need. Some local authorities offer relatively generous top-up funding; others impose strict caps or delays, leaving providers unable to deliver required support without making financial losses.
What does this mean for learners and providers?
Implications could be as follows:
For students:
- Reduced access to therapies, specialist tutors, and tailored support services.
- Longer waits for assessments and EHCP reviews.
- Fewer suitable placement options, particularly for those with the most complex needs.
For providers:
- Financial strain from subsidising underfunded support needs.
- Challenges in recruiting and retaining specialist staff.
- Risk of course or service closures, reducing choice for learners.
- Bureaucratic and variable HNF processes cause additional cost to providers outside of the support the learner requires
What Needs to Change?
- Fairer and more consistent funding: The National Funding Formula must ensure that all young people have equitable access to the support they need, regardless of where they live.
- Longer-term investment: Multi-year funding agreements would allow providers to plan and build sustainable, high-quality support. Current funding suffers from short-termism where providers have to re-apply for top up funding for each year of study.
- Reduced fragmentation: Working with multiple local authorities can cause significant administrative burden for providers, delayed payments and the ability to provide appropriate support. A centralised and consistent allocation process would support providers to make staffing appointments and physical changes more timely.
- Increased overall investment: Without a real-terms increase in High Needs funding, reforms will be undermined by simple lack of resource.
Providers continue to work pro-actively across the sector to provide the support and offer places to young people with an EHCP. However, too often providers are financing some of this support whilst they await payment and in many cases the funding provided does not cover the support a provider has put in place. Change is required as we continue to see the population of 16-24 year olds grow to ensure that as per the SEND review learners have access to the ‘Right Support, Right place, Right time’. It is time for the reforms to gather pace.
Post 16 High Needs Funding: A system under strain
For any questions, please contact Paul Stannard, 16 to 19 Senior Policy Manager, [email protected]
